AUSTRALIA'S SCIENCE OF LEARNING RESEARCH CENTRE
It’s now widely accepted that to
improve learning outcomes, teachers
need solid evidence to support what
they put in place in the classroom. This
need for accessible research into what
really works in schools and classrooms
is known as the ‘science of learning’: a
relatively new field that brings together
researchers from disparate areas.
In Australia, the field is led by the
Science of Learning Research Centre
(SLRC), a national collaboration
between nine research organisations
and the State Education departments
of Queensland, Victoria and South
Australia. Headquartered at The
THE SCIENCE OF
LEARNING
A need for evidence
University of Queensland, the SLRC aims
to bring together researchers from the
disciplines of neuroscience, cognitive
psychology and education to develop
scientifically validated strategies.
Incorporating the three disciplines
is a complementary approach, explains
Professor Pankaj Sah, Director of both
the SLRC and QBI. “Neuroscientists
have long been interested in
learning and memory formation.
How is it that the brain learns? How
do you lay down memories?”
Likewise, Prof Sah says, psychology
researchers are interested in the
behavioural side of learning: how we
interact with each other, perceive our
environment, and react to certain
stimuli. “And education researchers
and teachers,” he adds, “are of
course interested in the practical
processes of learning and teaching.”
The SLRC has experimental
classrooms in Brisbane and Melbourne
in which new learning principles are
tested. Findings from these are now
guiding how teachers focus student
attention to optimise learning.
Several science of learning centres
are conducting similar research in
other countries and the Australian
SLRC is partnering with organisations
and collaborators internationally.
This includes the Neuro-Education
Initiative at the Johns Hopkins School
of Education in Maryland, in the US.
NAPLAN IMPROVEMENT
The SLRC has trained more than 1200 teachers, including in a numeracy intervention
program in the Port Augusta–Quorn region of South Australia. In collaboration with the
South Australian Department of Education and Child Development, researchers worked
closely with teachers to reduce student anxiety about maths, leading to improved
NAPLAN scores in the region.